A viral moment is sparking a ton of backlash online. On Friday, May 29, Spanish tennis star Rafael Jódar exited the court — and a clip circulating on social media makes it look like he shoved a ball kid in the process. The clip, shared by X user @jackunheard, has garnered more than 8.2 million views, and some commenters have called Jódar’s behavior absolutely disgraceful.
“Tennis player Rafa Jodar SHOVES the ball girl out of the way,” Jack captioned the clip. “He should never play another tennis match again in his life. What a loser.”
And some people online definitely agreed with this interpretation.
Tennis player Rafa Jodar SHOVES the ball girl out of the way.
— Jack (@jackunheard) May 30, 2026
He should never play another tennis match again in his life.
What a loser. pic.twitter.com/h6a3RQ8H0a
The clip is short, and it’s hard to tell what happened. But because it looked like Jódar pushed the ball kid, some people on social media were outraged by it. “How is this not an immediate disqualification?” one commenter responded. “…Athletes need to be held to a higher standard of conduct than this.”
“A pro taking out post-match frustration on a young ball girl is pathetic and inexcusable,” another person wrote.
To some critics, the clip made Jódar look arrogant. “Well, we’ve just witnessed the end of Rafa Jodar’s career,” someone else said.
And a fourth critic added, “Pathetic attitude from Rafa Jodar….I mean he’s talented but this attitude doesn’t belong in the tennis court..”
But others defended Jódar and said he never touched the ball kid.
A false narrative that Rafa Jodar shoved a ball girl at Roland Garros went viral
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) May 30, 2026
He didn't. She trips over the poorly placed tarp while he's gesturing to his father in the crowd
When asked:
‘I didn’t touch her. No, no, no… I could never do that’pic.twitter.com/1r6yRBghj1
In the comments, several people shared the same video from other angles. Those versions make it look like the ball kid tripped while Jódar was walking by, creating a sort of “optical illusion” from certain angles, people argued in his defense.
One person said the viral clip was “misleading” and even irresponsible. “There’s a different angle that show he doesn’t touch her and he’s not even looking at her, he’s gesturing to someone in the crowd at the exact moment she stumbles back out of his way, so the arm action coincides with her stumbling whilst he’s looking into the crowd,” they explained.
Others agreed that the camera angle was the main problem. “She tripped on the sandbag…but its right as he’s walking by,” another person observed. “I thought it was at first too…like woah…but there’s other angles floating out there. He doesn’t make any contact with her at all.”
However, some X users still had questions about his behavior. Several people commented on how Jódar appeared to have “zero awareness” of what happened right in front of him and did not appear to check on the ball kid after she tripped.
Jódar later explained this situation.
During his post-match press conference, Jódar was asked about what happened and he explained that the ball kid “was walking backwards” and seemed to trip.
He said, “She was walking backwards… I didn’t push her or anything. I was saying to my dad to give me the things he was going to give me after my toilet break when I was coming back. But yes, she was in the middle, so I think she was trying to get out of the way going backwards.”
He continued, “I think she fell, not because I pushed her, but because it was something… the cover, it was right behind her, so when she was walking backwards, she fell with that.”
He added,” But obviously I appreciate all the work that the ball kids are doing. I know it’s difficult with the heat and the conditions to stay there, so I appreciate and I could never push a ball kid.”
Jódar was asked if he had touched her, and he denied that as well. “No, no, no,” he said. “I didn’t touch her. I could never do that.”
READ NEXT: People Express Concern About ‘Pressure’ On Kyle Busch’s 11-Year-Old Son After His Death
